Learn About It!
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No matter what mobile device being used, Google and Google Apps play a prominent role in how we access, use and save information.

Oh, that Google! An endless source of creativity and collaboration. Let's start by seeing some interesting and fun videos about Google:

Note: once you play the first video, you will see all the videos in this playlist, click the playlist dropdown.jpg in the upper left corner. There are TWO videos in this playlist.

Google may be most well known for it's search engine (The Oxford Dictionary officially added it as a verb in June 2006), Google also hosts many other applications, all of which are constantly on Google's improvement plan.

Google as many applications, every one with an application in education and business.

The shorter version!


The expanded version!


Google Tools for Schools


Google Applications
from Google themselves


Think About It!
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Let's see some examples of how google apps can be used in the K-12 classroom.

There are lots of districts that have posted lesson plans using Google.

http://www.mcpsmt.org/Page/7653
http://educationaltechnologyguy.blogspot.com/2011/10/lesson-plans-using-google-apps-in.html
http://www.mcpsmt.org/Page/7657
http://www.mcpsmt.org/Page/7658

From Educational Technology Mobile Learning, a "live" document on using Google Apps in the classroom.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1RSQIqTgFS48_rySwH-fmsjINOkV1QpSI8n1J54ISYWI/edit?hl=en_US#heading=h.hamx09by03pr


Plan It!

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Our jobs are about teaching, giving information, helping others to learn--whether it is in a kindergarten classroom or a Forbes 500 board room. But often, learners need a "job aid" for a task (or part of a task) to explain or remind (or "walk through") steps.

A job aid provides concise information or an easy-to-follow set of instructions to perform a specific task or procedure. Job aids are known by a variety of names, including: "cheat sheets," quick reference cards, performance aids, getting-started guides, flowcharts, checklists or "read me first." Regardless of what name we call them, job aids are designed to help us quickly and easily accomplish a goal, such as connect a digital camera to a PC, fill out an accident report, or find client information in the new database system. The two key words that define a job aid’s value are the words, "quickly" and "easily."

Job aids often can be produced quickly and inexpensively and should be considered an integral part of your training and documentation efforts. Job aids have many advantages and benefits, including:

- Enhancing retention and transfer of training to the job
- Providing consistency
- Supplying just-in-time information
- Communicating updates to learners or system users
- Reducing information overload in training
- Improving efficiency and quality
- Reducing risk and safety accidents
- Orienting new employees to job tasks

Job aids come in many formats, including checklists, step-by-step instructions, flowcharts, decision trees, graphic diagrams, worksheets, forms and look-up tables. The key to designing an effective job aid is careful planning and needs analysis to select the format and content for the job aid that best suits the target job need and audience.

Use the checklist job aid below as a guide to create and evaluate your own job aids.

1. Complete the Needs Analysis: Determine ...
- Purpose, audience, access, usage during training and on-the-job
- Subject matter experts and project team members (include representative users on the project team)
- Topic and sequence of topics
- Budget and timeframe for pilot and rollout
- Media and format
- Distribution and maintenance

2. Gather the Information: This can include ...
- Job information, concepts, and/or key business measures
- Procedures, process flowcharts, and decision trees
- Worksheets or forms
- Sequence of steps/commands for specific job tasks
- Sample documents
- Sample formats for job aids
- Screen shots for software programs
- Graphics

3. Meet with the Project Team to decide:
- Final size and design plans
- Page layout
- Conventions
- Use of graphics
- Creating a template

4. Create a Mock-Up
- Present to project team
- Make edits
- Review final outline draft
- Get final approval of final layout and topic sequence

5. Create Job Aid
- Have subject matter experts, sample users, and content reviewers review draft
- Make edits as needed

6. Pilot the Job Aid
- Plan communication strategy
- Print job aid (limited copies as needed) or make available in other media
- Gather feedback from pilot group of representative users
- Review feedback with project team and prioritize edits
- Make edits as needed for rollout

7. Implement the Job Aid
- Plan printing and distribution schedule
- Create a maintenance and update strategy
- Plan communication strategy
- Print, communicate about, and distribute the job aid

8. Evaluate the Job Aid
- Plan evaluation strategy
- Distribute questionnaire
- Tabulate results and review with project team
- Conduct interviews, focus groups, and observations to gather additional feedback
- Prioritize edits
- Create a maintenance and update strategy
- Make edits as needed for ongoing maintenance

So, that is the COMPLETE steps on "How To Create a Job Aid". We're taking a bit of a shortcut. You need to plan and make a job aid for your teaching/PD!

Examples but you can do MUCH better!)



Do It!
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Here are your assignments for this week (due next Sunday):

NOTE: under no circumstances would I suggest that you include SIX Google products in one job aid in your REAL JOB. That's pretty wild! My objective is to get you to think about how you COULD include Google Apps in your teaching/PD.

1. You need to use the 7 Google products below to create a job aid.

  • Google Docs (you can use docs, presentations, etc.)
  • Google Forms (creates the spreadsheet with compiled data from a survey)
  • Google Books / Scholar
  • Google Calendar
  • Google Maps
  • one of your choosing
  • 4 Google Add Ons

2. Stipulations on the assignment:
  • It must be authentic (the outcome has a REAL WORLD impact on the learner's world)
  • it must contain instructions to the learner (what are the directions you will give to the learners for this project)
  • all the tools listed above must be used
  • it MUST be creative

HEY! When you send me an email telling me the assignment is done, send me the LINK to your google job aid (as I assume you posted the job aid in a Google app!)
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IT'S TIME TO THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX!

Other Resources

Kathy Schrock's Bloomin' Google web map

Google Search Features
Google Web Search Support
"Boolify" Web Search Tool
Google Inside Search
Google Apps Marketplace
More Google Applications (list)

Google Custom Search
Internet Top-Level Domains

Doodle 4 Google - Information Packets
Doodle 4 Google - Sample Projects
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Google Sketchup
Sketchup Video Tutorials

Google Maps
Isaiah's Journey - a Google Map created by Kristin
Google Maps Tutorials
The_Amazing_Race_Google_Maps.docx
The_Amazing_Race_Google_Maps.docx
The_Amazing_Race_Google_Maps.docx

Picasa
Support Articles for Picasa

Google URL Shortener
A Google a Day - daily trivia question